September 15, 2010
www.gfb.org
Vol. 28 No. 37
PRODUCERS SHARE REGULATORY COMPLIANCE CONCERNS WITH EPA During a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) town hall meeting on Sept. 10, representatives from various agricultural organizations, including Georgia Farm Bureau, questioned U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson about pesticide applications, air quality initiatives and other regulatory issues they say affect their bottom line and in some cases could put them out of business. The meeting, part of the EPA’s Environmental Justice Tour, was held at South Georgia Technical College in Americus and drew stakeholders from agriculture and other industries. GFB Assistant Legislative Director Jeffrey Harvey told Jackson that farmers are concerned that the EPA is out to get them, pointing out that while the United States Department of Agriculture is urging farm owners to maintain small and medium sizes, the burdens of compliance with the regulations the EPA is issuing force them to expand or go out of business. For example, the EPA will finalize in December its final rule for National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) general permits for pesticide uses, many of which are already covered by permits under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). This represents a departure from 35 years of EPA practice, Harvey said. The agency has never required an NPDES permit for the application of FIFRA-registered crop protection products. Harvey said it is redundant and could cripple emergency pest management efforts, hampering the ability to respond quickly to new pest infestations and increasing the risk of crop losses. Charles Hall of the Georgia Fruit & Vegetable Growers Association expressed concern over delays in EPA decisions, citing an instance where growers needed a ruling on use of a fungicide this spring and still had not received a decision at the time of the town hall meeting. Other speakers raised questions about EPA’s position on greenhouse gas emissions, soil fumigant regulations, the removal of numerous pesticides from use with little or no advance warning and rural dust as it relates to the agency’s air quality standards. “Farming and ranching are a way of life and are businesses that operate on very close margins,” said Edison rancher Ernie Ford, a Calhoun County Farm Bureau member and board member of the Georgia Cattlemen’s Association. “We cannot withstand intervention by government or any other entity that will add to our expenses but not our income.” Dr. Steve Brown, assistant dean for Extension with the University of Georgia’s College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, asked for comments on pesticide drift regulations, noting that the regulations targeting droplet size are not the solution to the issue of pesticide drift.
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UGA EXTENSION TAKES STEPS TO RESTRUCTURE University of Georgia Cooperative Extension is taking steps to implement a restructuring plan that calls for assigning Extension resources to counties based on a sixlevel tier system. The restructuring process is necessitated by state cuts to the Extension budget totaling 23 percent in the past two years. The plan is expected to take up to 18 months to implement. “We had 480 employees statewide and now we're down to 239 agents,” Dr. Beverly Sparks, UGA College of Agricultural & Environmental Sciences (CAES) Associate Dean for Extension said. “We can't continue to serve at the level we have.” The reduction in agents has come through retirement or agents voluntarily leaving, but reduced funding has prevented Extension from filling vacant positions, Sparks said. Statewide, Extension has 113 ag agents, 90 4-H agents and 36 Family and Consumer Sciences (FACS) agents. The restructuring plan will assign counties a tier ranking using criteria to determine how ag agents, 4-H agents and FACS agents may be best utilized. The criteria includes: the farm gate value of commodities produced in a county, county population and population of school-age children, county government funding of Extension, agricultural expertise needed in a county, potential to share ag agents across county lines, placement of 4-H educator/program specialists, county support of 4-H, FACS expertise needed in a county due to low public health, poverty, bankruptcy and foreclosure rates, location of regional educational centers and access to mass media. CAES officials appointed a 20-member steering committee of UGA Extension faculty and staff from various levels and departments of the statewide organization to develop the plan. Since first meeting in March, the committee surveyed Extension employees, commodity groups, county government officials and county educators to get input. Georgia Farm Bureau members were surveyed during the organization's annual Commodity Conference in July. Sparks said district Extension leaders will now begin evaluating the needs of the counties in their districts according to plan criteria and assign tier rankings. “We have turned it back over to the district level directors who know the needs of their counties and know their county funding partners to decide how services should be allocated,” Sparks said. “We should know in a couple of months where counties will be placed in the tier system.” Under tier ranking, Extension services will be offered as follows: Tier 1 counties will have no local Extension office but will have a basic 4-H program offered in the school system through an employee supervised by an agent in another county. A Tier 2 county will have a core 4-H program and a county Extension office staffed by a secretary to help with diagnostic services and CES resources. A County Extension Coordinator (CEC) from another county will serve as administrator and agents will be assigned as resources but would not generally offer programs or make client visits. Tier 3 counties will have a core 4-H program, county office staffed with a secretary and a shared agent from a surrounding county who spends time in the office. A Tier 4 county will have a 4-H program, a county office with a secretary, one county-based agent who may be agriculture, FACS, 4-H or split between program areas. Tier 5 counties will have a 4-H program, a county office staffed with at least one support position and two or more agents (1 a CEC) to provide educational programs. Tier 6 counties will have 4-H, a CEC, multiple agents and assistants.
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GFB ADVISES TAX COUNCIL AGAINST TAXING FARM INPUTS Taxing farm inputs would significantly affect the bottom line of every farm in Georgia and put many farms in jeopardy, Georgia Farm Bureau President Zippy Duvall told the Special Council on Tax Reform and Fairness for Georgians during the fact-finding session it hosted Sept. 9 at Gainesville State College. “Subjecting farm inputs to sales tax would put a tremendous cash expense on a business that already operates on small margins,” Duvall testified. “It is no understatement to say many farms would be in jeopardy if farmers were forced to pay sales taxes on input costs.” Currently, farmers are not assessed sales tax on feed, seed, fertilizer, chemicals, equipment and certain uses of fuel or electricity. Duvall told the council that a Georgia State University study shows that in 2006 agriculture sales tax exemptions were less than $58 million. That's roughly one-half of one percent of all sales tax exemptions in Georgia, which totaled $10.9 billion that year. “The important point is that while farmers received exemptions of $58 million, those same farmers marketed products worth more than $10 billion. That is a remarkable return on investment for the state,” Duvall wrote in his submitted comments. “It's impressive what agriculture means to the state of Georgia. We’ve heard from farmers at every meeting, and the importance of tax exemptions to agriculture has been represented at every meeting,” Council Chairman A.D. Frazier told Duvall following his testimony. Frazier said the council will meet in late November to develop its recommendations to be presented to the Georgia General Assembly in January. He urged Georgians to visit the council's Web site http://fiscalresearch.gsu.edu/taxcouncil/index.htm to follow the process or to submit comments. GFB SEEKING ENTRIES FOR 2010 QUALITY HAY CONTEST Georgia Farm Bureau members who produce Bermudagrass hay are encouraged to enter the 2010 GFB Quality Hay Contest. The annual contest is sponsored by the GFB Hay Advisory Committee and is designed to encourage the production of better quality hay in Georgia. Hay entered in the contest will be tested at the University of Georgia testing lab using the Relative Forage Quality Test, which predicts the fiber digestibility and animal intake of hay. Winners will be determined by the results of the lab analysis and a visual inspection by a forage specialist. Final judging of the top five lab analysis samples will occur at the annual GFB Convention on Jekyll Island in December. Winners will be announced Dec. 6. Contest participants will receive a detailed printout of their hay analysis information from the University of Georgia. Prizes will be presented to the top five producers. The first place winner will receive the free use for one year of a Vermeer Trailed Hay Mower, compliments of the Vermeer Manufacturing Company, with the option to buy it at a reduced price at the end of the year. Entry forms outlining the procedure for entering the contest and rules may be picked up at your local county Farm Bureau office. There is a $10 entry fee to cover the analysis of each sample entered. The deadline for entering the contest is Oct. 29.
Leadership Alert page 4 of 4 UPCOMING EVENTS GFB DISTRICT ANNUAL MEETINGS Sept. 16 10th District Jamestown Baptist Church Sept. 21 2nd District North Ga. Tech. College Sept. 28 5th District Thomaston Civic Center Sept. 30 1st District 1st Baptist Church Contact your county Farm Bureau office for more information.
7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m.
Waycross Avalon Thomaston Calhoun
DAWSON COUNTY FFA ANTIQUE TRACTOR SHOW Sept. 25 Tractor Supply Company 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Dawsonville Antique tractor enthusiasts are invited to bring their tractors for this free show. Anyone interested in participating should contact Dawson County Farm Bureau Young Farmer Committee Member Seth Stowers by Sept. 20 at 706-429-6469. Event will also include a “slow-boy” race and a “blind driver” race. Event is a fundraiser to send Dawson County FFA students to the national convention in October. The Dawsonville Tractor Supply Company is located at 6921 Hwy. 53 E, Dawsonville, Ga. 30534. 2010 GEORGIA GRAZING SCHOOL Sept. 21-22 Houston County Extension Office Perry This two-day workshop will focus on soil fertility, forage crop establishment, plant growth, animal nutrient requirements, and management-intensive grazing. Training will take place in both classroom and field settings. Cost of the two-day program is $150 and includes lunches, a grazing school handbook, a forage and weed ID handbook, and a 4th Edition copy of the Southern Forages textbook. Participants are responsible for lodging. Registration is limited to 35 participants on a first-come, firstserve basis. Visit http://www.caes.uga.edu/commodities/fieldcrops/forages/events/GS10/GS10.html for more information or to register. TEAM AG GEORGIA FALL WORKSHOP Sept. 28 Krannert Center, Berry College Mt. Berry This free workshop for small, beginning and limited-resource farmers, begins with registration at 7:30 a.m. and ends at 3:30 p.m. Workshop topics include forestry and wildlife management, farmers markets, organics, financing small farms, value-added products, farm succession planning, cost-share opportunities and a tour of the Berry College livestock facilities and longleaf orchard. For more information, contact Lauren Bush at 770-254-7374 or lbush@gfc.state.ga.us or visit http://www.teamaggeorgia.com. SOUTHEASTERN BARN CONFERENCE Sept. 30 – Oct. 2 The Historic Rock Barn Canton Participants in this conference, sponsored in part by Cherokee County Farm Bureau, will learn about barn adaptive reuse, land conservation and urban farms. Registration is $75 before Sept. 10 and $95 after. Register online at http://www.rockbarn.org or call 770-345-3288 for more information. 16TH ANNUAL MULE ROUNDUP Oct. 1-2 Guysie Community (Hwy. 32) Near Alma Experience yesteryear at this showcase of heritage farming, which features a pioneer village, barnyard animals, farm demonstrations, mule plowing, a log smokehouse, a grist mill and lots more. A free gospel sing begins at 7 p.m. on Oct. 1. A horse and mule show will be held at 1 p.m. on Oct. 2. $50 cash will be awarded to the winners of the single and double mule plowing competition. Admission is $5 but is free for exhibitors and participants. For more information, call 912-632-1777.